Nearly 270 Cap-to-Cap delegates arrived in Washington, D.C. this weekend for the Sacramento Metro Chamber's 41st annual advocacy program, May 7-11. Kicking off the program on Monday will be keynote speaker U.S. Secretary of Human and Health Services Kathleen Sebelius. Health care reform and the Sacramento region's groundbreaking community development issues are topics on the agenda. Secretary Sebelius will speak for about 15 minutes and then do a hefty 15 minutes of direct questions from the chamber's delegation. Considering the immense role that health care plays in our region's economy, Sebelius' appearance is a rare opportunity for the region's business and civic leaders to hear direc

A policy report on Mayor Kevin Johnson’s 2010 environmental initiative, known as “Greenwise,” is scheduled to be released on Jan. 20 at the annual State of the City address. The Greenwise report will consist of an action plan and goals, according to a Dec. 15 e-mail from the Greenwise project coordinator Lauren Altdoerffer. Johnson will speak at the State of the City address, which will be held at the Sacramento Convention Center. The report will be the product of months of meetings and brainstorming sessions on environmental sustainability in the Sacramento region. Johnson has repeatedly stressed that the focus on environmental progress should be regional. “If we look at just one poli

The Sacramento region is about to see even more hyperlocal news coverage as TV station News10 and AOL's Patch.com roll out new media sites nearly simultaneously. Sacramento's ABC affiliate, News10, and its website, News10.net, are preparing to launch 30 hyperlocal news sites in early 2011. Patch.com flipped the switch on its first site in suburban Rosemont on Thursday and plans to start 11 more sites in Davis, the suburbs and the foothills within the next year. The sites add to a recent proliferation of online media offerings in the area. "News10 is now getting down deep into the hyperlocal news business," said Tim Geraghty, vice president of the News10 Information Center. The TV stati

Sacramento area residents voiced their opinion on the region’s Metropolitan Transportation Plan at a workshop on Wednesday, and they largely agreed to support a plan that includes greater emphasis on the environment and public transit. This plan, or MTP2035 (Metropolitan Transportation Plan for 2035), is based on assumptions regarding population growth, the economy, transportation, housing, employment, and how infrastructure will need to adjust for the inevitable changes that will occur over the next 25 years. “We’re not shy to give you a lot of information to work with,” said SACOG Executive Director Mike McKeever. Updating the plan, which is a federal requirement, has involved the Sac

Local leaders in the fields of politics, business and environmentalism gathered in Sacramento on Friday to brainstorm how the region could advance its efforts to become more economically and environmentally sustainable. The Sacramento Metro Chamber’s “State of the Region” event focused on sustainability in the area’s communities. Chamber spokesman Hal Silliman said more than 300 people attended the event, which was held at the Hyatt hotel downtown and included a panel of local leaders and a presentation from an Environmental Protection Agency analyst. Elected officials from around the region — including Davis, Sacramento, Folsom and Citrus Heights — listened to the panel. Matthew Dalbey

Sacramento Residents have an opportunity to make their region a national leader for green technology development, according to author and activist Van Jones, who received a standing ovation for his speech at Mayor Kevin Johnson's second public meeting for Greenwise Sacramento. "The kind of environmental solutions that make sense for Sacramento make sense for America," Jones said. Over 400 area residents attended the Tuesday afternoon meeting to listen to the former special adviser to the Obama administration. He said that he has travelled all over the country for green events, and he was impressed with Sacramento’s. "Usually (a city) will have the mayor, they'll have a press conference